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Sunday, November 09 2008

SPRITELY STEPS TO FIRST STAKES WIN IN HONEY BEE

East Rutherford, NJ [Nov. 8, 2008] - Spritely led from gate to wire as she earned her first stakes victory in the $60,000 Honey Bee on Saturday night at the Meadowlands.

Ridden by Mike Luzzi, Spritely [$7.80, $3.80, $2.60] repelled a challenge by Hamsa [$3.20, $2.80] on the final turn and drew off to a three-length victory. She covered the 1 1/16 miles in 1:37 1/5 over a sloppy track. It was nine lengths back to Sky Copper in third [$5.20].

Spritely's three starts prior to the Honey Bee were all at six or seven furlongs.

Medaglia d’Oro Colt Brings $290,000 On Saturday at Keeneland

Lexington, KY (November 8, 2008) – Demand for quality foals continued on Saturday at Keeneland’s November Breeding Stock Sale, where weanling colts accounted for seven of the session’s top 10 prices.

Stockplace paid the day’s highest price of $290,000 for a colt by Medaglia d’Oro. Out of the Affirmed mare Vanity Flair, the colt is from the family of stakes winners Music Maestro, Circulating and La Grande Mamma.

CHOCOLATE CANDY RALLIES UNDER GOMEZ TO WIN REAL QUIET STAKES

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (Nov. 8, 2008) — Chocolate Candy, ridden perfectly by Garrett Gomez, charged to the lead inside the sixteenth pole and went on to a one-length victory in Saturday’s $100,000 Real Quiet Stakes at Hollywood Park.

The bay son of Candy Ride covered 1 1/16 miles on Cushion Track in a stakes record time of 1:42.25 while paying $15.60, $6.80 and $3.80 as the fourth choice in the field of seven 2-year-olds. The upset helped set up a Pick Six carryover of $112,486 when racing resumes Sunday.

Saturday, November 08 2008

SIX NEW YORK STALLION SERIES RACES SUNDAY AT BIG A

Three weeks ago, Belmont Park was the site of New York Showcase Day, with seven stakes races worth $1 million for state-bred horses. This Sunday will be a special day at Aqueduct Racetrack, a mini-showcase day featuring a half-dozen stakes races worth $500,000 restricted to horses sired by New York stallions.

There are many familiar names among the 51 horses entered in the six New York Stallion Series events, including the Richard Dutrow-trained Logic Way, a neck winner over Get Serious in the Mohawk Handicap on Showcase Day. With four victories and one second in six starts this year, Logic Way is one of 10 entered in the $75,000 Cormorant Division at 1 1/16th miles on the turf, which will be run as the seventh race on the day’s nine-race card. Also returning from the Mohawk are Get Serious and Classic Pack, who was fifth.

“WHEELS UP” LOOKS TO CLEAR GRADED STAKES HURDLE

When trainer Paul Douglas Fout saw Wheels Up At Noon in action at Delaware Park, he was immediately struck by the horse’s agility and balance. Naturally, being primarily a trainer of steeplechasers, Fout’s first thought was that the son of Outflanker would make a wonderful hurdler.

That’s exactly what Fout intended to do with the dark bay colt after he purchased him late last year for Eldon Farm, and gelded him. But things didn’t quite work out as Fout intended.

NAPRAVNIK BACK AFTER MISSING THREE MONTHS WITH BROKEN LEG

LAUREL, MD. 11-07-08---Pound for pound jockeys could be the world’s toughest athlete. In the Maryland riding colony no one is as physically or mentally resilient as Rosie Napravnik. In the first 41 months of her career, the 20-year-old has missed 10 months of action with four major injuries. She recently returned after breaking the tibia and fibula bones in her left leg in a spill at Delaware Park three months ago.

“I honestly feel like I have not missed a beat,” said Napravnik, the 2006 Eclipse Award winning runner-up for outstanding apprentice. “I am getting really experienced at bouncing back from injuries and I feel like I never left. I worked horses for about three weeks before I rode my first race (last Saturday at Delaware Park) and was in an intense therapy program at the same time working out four hours a day-five days a week. I really worked hard getting fit and I think it has paid off.”

GERMAN-BRED CAPRICE SEEKS FIRST U.S. WIN IN HERMOSA BEACH

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (Nov. 7, 2008) — German-bred Caprice will carry high weight of 118 pounds as she aims for her first North American victory in a contentious field of nine fillies and mares in the $65,000 Hermosa Beach Handicap at Hollywood Park.

Caprice, based in the East with trainer H. Graham Motion, won at the Hermosa Beach distance of 1½ miles in France last September. The 5-year-old mare, who came to the U.S. for her 2008 campaign, has failed to win but has not missed the board in four starts. Most recently, she finished third in the Dowager Stakes at Keeneland. Prior to that, she was only beaten a neck while finishing second in the Claire Marine at Arlington Park. Both races were on the turf at 1½ miles.

HP Notes: Friday, Nov. 7, 2008

MUNY ON TARGET FOR $500,000 HOLLYWOOD DERBY

Muny, who posted his third straight victory with a front-running effort in the Oak Tree Derby on the Breeders‘ Cup undercard at Santa Anita, is slated to make his next start in the $500,000 Hollywood Derby on Nov. 30, trainer Mike Puype said Friday at Hollywood Park. The Grade I race is at 1 ¼ miles on turf.

“He’s three-for-four,” said Puype of the 3-year-old gelding. “I bet not many horses have won the Oak Tree Derby in only their fourth start. It’s not easy to take on those seasoned horses and carry them wire-to-wire.

JAMES, ANTONGEORGI TEAM UP FOR TWO MORE WINS AT GGF

James and Antongeorgi, who teamed up to win the sixth race Thursday with Simple Justice ($6.60), clicked again in the first and sixth races Friday. The duo took the opener with Summer Solstice ($7.80) and the sixth with Private Quaters ($8.40).

Friday, November 07 2008

Mega Rush from off the pace suitable for the Frost King

The two-year-old son of Megas Vukefalos enters the seven-furlong Ontario-sired event as the freshest of the eight juveniles. The Mike DePaulo trainee hasn't raced since he broke his maiden in a maiden dash on September 26.

"We thought we would wait and give him a shot in this race and give him a good chance to run big," said the Toronto native. "We've learned that we don't want to rush him back. He seems to run better when his races were spaced out."